He was originally sentenced to death, until what some activists believed was the influence of global attention and internal pressure convinced Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Khamenei to call off his death sentence.
Awalnya, ia dihukum mati, sampai yang diyakini beberapa aktivis sebagai pengaruh perhatian dunia dan desakan internal yang meyakinkan Pemimpin Agung Iran, Ayatullah Khomenei, untuk membatalkan hukuman matinya.